Malta: When to Go

The best time to visit Malta is during the lull from April to June, between the rainy season (such as it is) and the hot Mediterranean summer. This is also when room rates drop by as much as 40%. For fine weather, September and October are also good months to visit, but the pleasant weather can sometimes be interrupted by a hot and humid xlokk (sirocco) wind. Beware the uncomfortably hot temperatures of July and August.

The Christmas and New Year period is a mini-high season in the middle of winter, when many Maltese emigrants return home to visit friends and family, and European tourists come looking for a spot of winter sunshine. Otherwise, you can find some very cheap flight and accommodation deals between November and March.

The main season for festas (feast days) is June to September, but if you want to catch a festa out of season, there's the Feast of St Paul's Shipwreck in Valletta on 10 February, and the Feast of the Immaculate Conception in Cospicua on 8 December. Two of the liveliest and most popular events, marked by public holidays, are the Carnival Week in early March and the L'Imnarja festival on 28 and 29 June.

Weather

Malta's hot, dry summer can sometimes be uncomfortable, owing to the winds, but is otherwise a sunny Mediterranean treat. July daytime temperatures hover around 36°C (97°F). Conditions are also pleasant during winter with January averaging a mild range of 10-14°C (50-58°F). The rain is heaviest in winter, but is still only moderate, with most days dry.

In November and December, expect daytime temperatures of 12-18ºC (54-64ºF) and a fair amount of sunshine between showers (the total annual rainfall is low, around 580mm/23in, and falls mainly between October and February). January and February are the coldest months.

Winds are a feature of Malta's weather. The stiff sea breeze is cooling in summer. In winter, however, the northeasterly griga can whip up the waves, occasionally disrupting the ferry service from the island of Malta to Gozo. In spring and autumn, the southeasterly xlokk (sirocco) sometimes blows in from North Africa, bringing humid and occasionally foggy conditions.